Lost Sheep

Now the tax collectors and "sinners" were all gathering around to hear him. But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law muttered, "This man welcomes sinners and eats with them." Then Jesus told them this parable: "Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Does he not leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it? And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, 'Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.' I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent. Luke 15: 1-7

As a Christian I find it more difficult sometimes to accept God's forgiveness now then when I was just coming to Christ. When we have a distorted view of God we tend to have a much distorted view of His forgiveness also. When you think of God's forgiveness do you envision God shaking His head and saying, “again!” Or do you see His looking down on you as though He is greatly disapproving in you? Or do you see His with His arms open wide to welcome you and your confession? As we look at the parable above we see that Jesus is the shepherd who goes looking for the lost sheep. God opened my eyes one night as I read this story. I always looked at it as one who was unsaved and never knew of Christ love. But if you read it carefully you can see that the lost sheep was one of His own. This sheep was part of the fold and knew Jesus as the great shepherd. The sheep had wondered off from the Masters direction and went his own way. It was a gentle reminder even when I wonder off in the wrong direction; God doesn't give up on me and forget about me. He doesn't just sit and wait for me to return, He leaves the fold and goes looking for me. He desires to have the relationship restored, so He looks to finds me and when He does, He doesn’t scorn me or look to punish me. He puts me on His shoulders and carries me back home. He calls His friends and neighbors to rejoice with Him. So with that in mind why do we shy away from God when we need to confess our disobedience to Him? Why do we fear what God is going to do when we repent? Correction only comes to those who are in disobedience not who are willing to repent. God desires to restore the broken relationship. He desires to have fellowship with you, His child. He wants to rejoice with you, not to harm you. Look to see the truth of scripture of how much God loves and desires fellowship with His children, even His children who have wondered off. How can we not approach the throne of grace and ask for His loving forgiveness from Him.